How many big bags fit in a container?
A 20ft container holds 12 big bags upright (footprint about 90×90 cm), a 40ft container holds 26 — where full 1 t bags practically reach the payload limit.
How the 12 stand in a 20ft — calculated, not copied
Calculated with a 90 × 90 cm footprint per bag: 6 per row, 2 rows — turning gains nothing with a square footprint, and no bag fits into the remaining 55 cm of width. This is the layout from above:
The figures per container
| Container | 1 tier | Weight full (approx. 1,000 kg each) |
|---|---|---|
| 20′ Standard | 12 | ≈ 12 t |
| 40′ Standard / High Cube | 26 | ≈ 26 t — at the payload limit |
In a 40ft, weight is the limit — not space
26 full 1 t bags are 26 t — against roughly 26.6 t of payload in a 40ft container. The floor is full, and so is the scale. On the road the sums tip even earlier: in Germany typically 28 t remain for container plus cargo, so after tare roughly 24 t of cargo — a full 40ft at 26 t only runs under the intermodal 44 t exception. Lighter products shift everything accordingly.
Frequently asked questions
Can full big bags be stacked?
Only form-stable bags approved for it (manufacturer/UN markings) — many full big bags ship in a single tier. Two tiers also double the weight, and payload usually bites before height.
Why not 13 in a 20ft?
After 6 bags of 90 cm, 45 cm of length remain; beside 2 rows of 90 cm, 55 cm of width remain — no further bag fits either way.
My bag measures 95 × 95 or sits on a pallet — what then?
Then positions and weight change: the 3D calculator takes the real dimensions including the pallet and computes positions, payload and road limits from them.
The button opens the calculator with a matching example load — freely adjustable there.